zws provides assistance to your company in applying for the following local business rebates and federal tax incentives:

$1800 Austin Business Rebate

Qualifying businesses can earn up to $1,800 in rebates to start, expand, or improve recycling, composting or other zero waste programs:

Businesses already affected under the URO can improve and expand existing recycling, composting, or other waste diversion programs. By increasing the amount of materials currently diverted from Austin landfills, businesses can receive rebates up to $1,800.

Businesses not yet affected under the URO can create "early adopter" zero waste programs such as recycling, composting, or other waste diversion methods.Contract for new recycling and/or composting services and receive up to $900 for start-up costs and 50 percent off monthly service invoices up to $150 per month.

federal tax incentives for food donations

In December 2015, Congress passed the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act which renews the tax deduction for charitable donations of food inventory, adjusts the rules for who and what is eligible for the deduction, and how it is calculated. Importantly, any donations companies may have made in 2015 are also covered.

Any business with food to donate can claim the deduction. That means smaller-scale operations including farms, ranches, and restaurants will now be able to deduct more than just the cost of acquiring the product.

The annual cap on food deduction donations has increased from no more than 10 percent of a business’ total taxable income to 15 percent of its net income, starting in 2016.

Deductions can be carried forward for five years in case a business had a bad year and a great deal of excess food to donate.

When a company donates products because they fail to meet internal standards—packaging flaws, labeling errors, short shelf life—it can use as a benchmark the price of the same or similar products the company sells.